Action Z
The action Z (Czech: Akce Z) was in the days of socialist rule in Czechoslovakia an unpaid activity of the population. These were to various relief activities in areas that have not been done on the part of the state administration - whether for financial reasons or due to improper planning.
Officially it was - similar to the Subbotniks in the GDR - a voluntary work. Government Regulation 14/1959, as laid down in § 27.1, it was care measures (Czech: zvelebování ). In the 50s and 60s of the 20th century belonged to typically clean-up and greening in settlements.
Increasingly, this activity has, however, leave the area of self-help of the citizens, and included more frequently in extensive measures in the area of complex investment plans of the economy. These were, for example, to the construction or rehabilitation of housing and settlements, the construction of sewers, etc.; it was built in this way numerous grocery stores in smaller communities as well as cultural centers in the cities.
Over time, such activities have been planned, there was governing bodies, policies, methodological instructions of the State Planning Commission, the actions were held in the business plans and planning appropriate investments: the voluntary self-help has become an integral component of the central development plan.
However, this forced by the state administrative actions reached proportions that have already been criticized and early 70s in the Federal Assembly. On one hand, the achieved values and their increase by 30 percent reported the previous year, proud, on the other hand, there is criticism that the solution does not substitute lies in the field of self-help ( they " no longer have the character of self-help actions "), but in a " better quality preparation and drawing up plans for the capital construction, "and it is also added verklausuriert that this could affect the continued willingness of the population.
The known for 1972 numbers are also convincing: if we include all the new values together, they amount to about 10 billion crowns, which brought the state budget savings for investments of around 1.573 billion crowns. Among the newly created values , which represent about 20 percent of the budgets of the local authorities for investment, for the year 1972 the following ( in a then 15 million inhabitants state ) objects are alone mentioned: 1408 km drains, 2396 km roads, 113 new kindergartens, 38 primary schools, 61 school gardens, 48 school canteens, 16 crèches, 36 school workshops, in 1540 bus shelters, 63 medical centers, 609 cultural and similar homes, 125 gyms and other sports facilities, 50 224 m2 of retail space for various stores, etc. for this reason, it has been proposed a Directive to limit the total to 5 million crowns per single action.
Only apparently these actions were voluntary. In reality, a certain amount of pressure was exerted on citizens, participation in actions has been documented, and with citizens, whose participation was unsatisfactory, discussions were guided at least, consequences in the workplace threatened, etc.